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Olympians say poor oral health is impairing performance

30 September 2013

Many of the elite sportsmen and women
who competed at the London 2012 Olympic Games had poor levels of oral health
similar to those experienced by the most disadvantaged populations. 18 per cent
of athletes surveyed said their oral health was having a negative impact on
their performance.

The research, which was led by
Professor Ian Needleman at the UCL Eastman Dental Institute, is published in
the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

The researchers recruited 302 athletes
to take part in the study at the Dental Clinic in the London 2012 athletes’
village. The athletes represented 25 different sports, with 95 (34.9 per cent) competing
in track and field, 38 (14 per cent) boxing and 31 (11.4 per cent) playing hockey.
The athletes were given a systematic oral health check-up before being asked to
give a personal assessment of the impact of oral health on their quality of life
and athletic training/performance.

Overall, the research team found high levels of poor oral
health with 55 per cent of athletes suffering from dental caries (tooth decay),
of which 41 per cent was into the dentine (and therefore irreversible). More
than three quarters of the participants had gingivitis (early stage gum
disease) with 15 per cent showing signs of periodontitis, an irreversible gum
infection in the soft tissue around the teeth.

It is amazing that many professional athletes – people who dedicate a huge amount of time and energy to honing their physical abilities – do not have sufficient support for their oral health needs, even though this negatively impacts on their training and performance.

Professor Ian Needleman, UCL Eastman Dental Institute

42 per cent of athletes
taking part in the study said that they were “bothered by oral health” issues,
with 28 per cent saying that it affected their quality of life. Almost one in five
(18 per cent) athletes said that they believed poor oral health was negatively affecting
their training or performance levels.

Nearly half of participants (46.5 per
cent) had not attended for a dental examination or hygiene care in the previous
year, while 8.7 per cent said they had never been to the dentist.

Professor Ian Needleman, lead author of
the paper at the UCL Eastman Dental Institute, said: “Oral health is important
for wellbeing and successful elite sporting performance. It is amazing that
many professional athletes – people who dedicate a huge amount of time and
energy to honing their physical abilities – do not have sufficient support for
their oral health needs, even though this negatively impacts on their training
and performance.

“Oral health assessment
should be part of every athlete’s routine medical care,” continues Professor
Needleman. “If we are going to help them optimise their level of performance we
need to concentrate on oral health promotion and disease prevention strategies
to facilitate the health and wellbeing of all our elite athletes.”

In the report the authors
speculate that the associations between oral health, wellbeing and performance
might be explained by oral disease causing pain, systemic inflammation and a
reduction in self-confidence and quality of life.

Previous studies have
repeatedly found athletes to have poor oral health, something which might result
from frequent carbohydrate intake, a reduced immune function through intensive
training and a lack of awareness about the links between oral health and elite
performance.